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Baked Chocolate Doughnuts

Holy doughnut hole, folks. Doughnuts: Simple and Delicious Recipes to Make at Home is now available and shipping on Amazon, Powell’s Books, and Barnes & Noble. I am kind of speechless… for so long I’ve been saying it’s not out until fall. But suddenly, it’s here and it’s real. I hope that you all have as much fun making doughnuts as I did making the book!

Before anything else, I want to say a huge thank you to a few folks. My publisher, for turning my idea into something so beautiful. My friends and family for encouraging me along the way. My testers for working with me to really make the recipes shine (testers: expect email from me soon… I thought a had a couple more weeks before the book was ready!) You simply cannot make a book all on your own, and I know I certainly couldn’t have done it without all of you.

So, with that, I am celebrating with some doughnuts and I thought it would be fun to share a recipe. How about some Baked Chocolate Cake Doughnuts!

This recipe isn’t in the book, but it is just a slight variation of the baked cake doughnut recipe that is. The beauty of the baked cake doughnuts is that they come together in a very short time… it’s only about 30 minutes from start to finish, and there’s no oil to deal with at the end.

You do need a doughnut pan to get a good doughnut shape. I prefer the mini doughnuts to the larger ones when baking… the smaller size bakes a bit more evenly and stay a bit more tender. If you don’t have a doughnut pan though, don’t fret. You can still make the batter and cook it up in a muffin tin (again, mini muffin tins work best) for doughnut flavored muffins.

This recipe only makes about 15 mini doughnuts, so chance are you may not have many left at the end of breakfast… but if you do end up with leftovers, come back tomorrow for a fun recipe for using doughnuts that have become a bit stale. It is almost worth making a double batch, just to have the leftovers!

Baked Chocolate Cake Doughnuts

It may seem strange to add nutmeg to a chocolate recipe, but nutmeg is the key to a recognizable doughnut flavor. It’s fine to leave it out, but your doughnuts may taste a bit more like chocolate cupcakes.

Lightly grease a doughnut (or muffin) tin and preheat the oven to 350F.

Sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and baking soda, and then whisk in the sugar, nutmeg and salt.

Add the butter, and using your fingers, rub it into the dry ingredients until it becomes coarse crumbs.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, yogurt, vanilla and egg. Add to the flour mixture and stir until just combined. Do not overmix, or your doughnuts may be a bit rubbery.

Fill each cup 1/2 to 3/4 full. You can do this with a spoon, but I prefer using a piping bag to fill each cup more evenly and cleanly. It’s important not to overfill, or as the doughnuts rise, you’ll lose the hole.

Bake for 6 to 10 minutes (depending on the size of your doughnut pan), until the doughnuts spring back when touched. Let cool slightly on a wire rack before glazing. If coating in powdered sugar, let them cool even a bit more.

Makes about 15 mini doughnuts.

Buttermilk Glaze

Doughnut glaze is very simple to make… basically just mixing powdered sugar with some sort of liquid. For these doughnuts, I used a splash of buttermilk, but you can use milk, water, or any liquid. Start with about 1 cup of powdered sugar in a bowl, and add about 1 teaspoon of buttermilk. Start blending with a spoon until you get a thick paste. Add more buttermilk in very small amounts, at about 1/4 teaspoon at a time, and stir it in, using the back of the spoon to break down any clumps. You are aiming for a consistency that is about like a thick cake icing. If you add too much liquid at once, you won’t be able to get out the clumps. Once you get a smooth mixture, continue adding liquid at 1/4 teaspoon at a time until you get a slightly thinner glaze that slowly drips from the spoon.

I was so thrilled when Amazon notified me that they had already shipped your book. I wasn’t expecting it for a few more weeks. Unfortunately it looks like I won’t get it in time for our fall breakfast gathering and hike this Saturday, so thanks for the recipe to get me through until the book arrives.

Oh WOW, it’s only 8.30am and I am craving doughnuts! I think I should have been a cop, then I would never need an excuse to have doughnuts!
I love that they are baked and not fried – a must try this weekend.

I came across your name on Cream Puffs in Venice and got hooked…I’m dying to lay my hands on your book but amazon.com is making it such a painful process! Can’t wait to try out the Creme Brulee Doughnuts!! 🙂

Yes, I’ve made all the baked doughnut recipes in a regular sized doughnut pan, although I have a slight preference for the mini ones because they can cook a bit more evenly. Just be careful on the cooking time, because they can quickly overcook. They will need slightly more time than the minis. I also recommend glazing any baked doughnut, which helps to soften any “crust” they may get.

Baked doughnuts (really ANY homemade doughnut) really should be eaten the same day. They can go stale quite quickly, and I haven’t found a storage mechanism that keeps them fresh without getting soggy. If you dip them in a thick layer of chocolate glaze though, they will keep a bit longer.

I made these this past weekend and they were delicious!! Thank you so much for this (and for the grams measurements!!!). Quick question for you: can the donuts in your book be baked like this one or do they mainly need to be fried?

Hi Lisa – So glad you enjoyed these baked doughnuts! And, yes, the book has both baked and fried recipes in it. For the most part, you can use the baked dough recipes to make any of the recipes in the flavors section… the only ones that would be a bit harder would be filled cake doughnuts (I think the apple pie doughnut was the only one of those), because those require a rollable dough rather than a batter.

Is it possible to subsitute the egg in the recipe for something else, if so what? I need an eggless version.

Beverly

the travel packs of milled flaxseed I have, say on the back that one pack can be used in place of egg in baked goods.

Lolprn4life

Thank you for the recipe…it didn’t work well for me but I may not have converted the grams correctly. I found that to be quite frustrating actually. Maybe this is common knowledge for professional or accomplished bakers, but I am just am American home cook who is not fluent in metric!

Thank you for the recipe…it didn’t work well for me but I may not have converted the grams correctly. I found that to be quite frustrating actually. Maybe this is common knowledge for professional or accomplished bakers, but I am just am American home cook who is not fluent in metric!

Caitlin

This is the first time I make baked doughnuts and they are everything I imagined them to be! I did fill the molds a little too much, but I’ll know for next time. Thank you for the recipe!

These were wonderful! I used sour cream in place of the yogurt, but otherwise followed the recipe ingredients. I baked mine in regular-sized doughnut pans at 375 degrees for about 12 minutes. They were perfectly moist and tender. Thank you for sharing your recipe!

LaKeisha

These doughnuts were really good! I used a muffin pan because it was all I had. I substituted half the all-purpose flour for whole wheat flour and made a chocolate frosting with cocoa. I will definitely be making these again! Thanks so much for sharing.

This is a perfect recipe. I am anxious to try baking a few donuts for my donut loving husband.

Muking

They are super good!!

Guest

Perfect chocolate doughnut recipe! They were quick and easy. I substituted heavy cream for buttermilk because I didn’t have buttermilk. They turned out perfectly! Hopefully I’ll get pics up on my blog soon 🙂

Julie Johnson

It worked like a charm! This was so easy and so quick. I substituted heavy cream for the buttermilk, because I didn’t have buttermilk. It worked great 🙂 I’ll get photos up on my blog soon. imaginecreateproduce.blogspot.com

Rachel

I made these a few hours ago and they were perfect! I was one of the first recipes I’ve made that didn’t have any problems. They weren’t dry and they tasted wonderful! I will be making these again.

Emma

These look great! I have a recipe for baked spice doughnuts, but chocolate is my favorite. I am really interested to see (taste) how the nutmeg is in the recipe.

Janine Jones

I’m going to bake those muffins this evening and can’t wait to try them!
I hope they taste as delicious as they look. Thanks for the recipe and
wonderful photos!!!